Rodolfo Sancio (Texas) will deliver a presentation entitled "Integrity and Risk Assessment of Pipelines and SCRs" at the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute's (NGI) workshop at the NGI office in Houston, Texas from 8:00 - 4:00 p.m. on April 27, 2017. According to Rodolfo, delivering safe, reliable and cost effective solutions to complex and challenging problems is the ultimate goal in our industry. Currently, the codes and standards lack specific guidance on geotechnical soil modeling for pipelines…
Silvia Mancini (Ontario), Mike Kavanaugh, and Mark Davidson (California) co-authored an article published in the American Bar Association's (ABA) journal Natural Resources & Environment in Volume 31, Number 4, Spring 2017. The article, entitled "The 'CSI' in Environmental Forensics Using Compound-Specific Isotope Analysis in Legal Matters," discusses the utility of compound specific isotope analysis (CSIA) in environmental forensics, with a particular focus on appropriate use in legal settings. The Geosyntec authors collaborated with William Pence,…
Mary deFlaun (New Jersey), Claire Wildman (California), and Neal Durant (Washington, D.C.) presented at the 253rd American Chemical Society National Meeting & Exposition entitled "Advanced Materials, Technologies, Systems & Processes" at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, California on April 3-4, 2017. Mary was invited to present on bioreactors in South Africa, Claire's presentation was about chromium chemistry in bioreactors, she also co-moderated a session on metals treatment in remote areas, and Neal was invited…
Lee Mullon (Florida) co-authored and article published in the Journal of Hydrology on March 9, 2017. The article is entitled "Multi-scale Quantitative Precipitation Forecasting Using Nonlinear and Nonstationary Teleconnection Signals and Artificial Neural Network Models." It analyzes at how climate change teleconnection signals are used in predicting precipitation in the Adirondack Mountains. The research used a statistical approach to isolate unique teleconnection signals that exist in the Adirondack Mountains. Those unique signals were then utilized…
A Geosyntec project was selected as the Silver Engineering Excellence Award (EEA) winner by the American Council of Engineering Companies New Hampshire Chapter (ACEC-NH). The award was presented at the Chapter's 2017 EEA ceremony for the design and construction of a high-capacity groundwater supply with in situ treatment. Geosyntec designed and constructed the system for a Midwest biotech production facility to augment their existing water supply and treatment system. The water supply changes were necessary…
MMI Engineering (MMI) is featured in an article entitled "Improving Passive Fire Protection Systems" in Offshore Engineer magazine on pages 26-27 in the April 2017 edition. Coinciding with the magazine's focus on asset integrity, the article discusses the importance of Passive Fire Protection (PFP) and how, more often than not, incorrect systems are specified and installed, a practice which compromises safety and loss prevention. The article also details The Hydrocarbon Passive Fire Protection Network (PFPNet), an independent,…
Bob Hartzel, Andrea Braga (Massachusetts), and Dan Bourdeau (Portsmouth) will present at the 28th Annual Nonpoint Source (NPS) Pollution Conference, sponsored by the New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission (NEIWPCC), at the Hotel Northampton in Northampton, Massachusetts on April 12-13, 2017. Geosyntec's presentations will focus on recent groundbreaking projects that use advanced stormwater management tools to minimize NPS impacts on water quality. Bob's presentation, entitled "Massachusetts Watershed Based Plans (WBPs): A New Web-Based Tool…
SiREM technologies will be featured in two platform presentations at the annual Clemson Hydrogeology Symposium at Clemson University in South Carolina on April 6, 2017. Sandra Dworatzek, a Senior Manager at SiREM, a division of Geosyntec, will present "Laboratory Testing in Support of Monitored Natural Attenuation of Chlorinated Solvents." The talk presents Gene-Trac qPCR testing and next-generation sequencing for microbial community characterization along with magnetic susceptibility, X-ray diffraction for iron mineral speciation, and other leading-edge…
Lelio Mejia will present a lecture at the 40th Spring Seminar and 20th Geo Expo of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Geo-Institute Los Angeles Chapter in Long Beach, California at 3:30-4:30 p.m. on April 12, 2017. Lelio's lecture, entitled "Engineering Challenges of the Dams of the Panama Canal Expansion," will present an overview of the Panama Canal Expansion Project and of the dams that form the new Pacific Access Channel, known as the…
Dogus Meric (Illinois) is the lead author of an article published in the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering on March 17, 2017. The article, entitled "Nonlinear, Nonequilibrium One-Dimensional Large-Strain Consolidation Coupled Contaminant Transport Model of Capped Sediments," considers numerical modeling to estimate transient chemical flux leaving the capped sediments. The new model offers the use of site-specific time-dependent sorption in addition to its previously existing capabilities on finite-strain…
Geosyntec staff will make a substantial technical contribution to the United States Society on Dams (USSD) 2017 Annual Conference and Exhibition in Anaheim, California on April 3-7, 2017. Presentations will be made by Lelio Mejia, Chris Conkle, Al Preston (California), Glenn Rix, Raphael Siebenmann (Georgia), Lucas deMelo (Maryland), Jamey Rosen (Guelph), Andrew Higgins (Ontario). The 2017 USSD Conference Theme is "It's a Small World: Managing Our Water Resources." The theme makes lighthearted reference to the…
A team of Geosyntec professionals received the Innovation Award during the 2017 Illinois Association for Floodplain and Stormwater Management (IAFSM) Conference at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Springfield, Illinois on March 8-9, 2017. The award was given for their work on the Phase II Pilot Study. In the fall of 2016, The Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) and Geosyntec completed a first of its kind pilot study within a 17 square mile…
Scott Luettich (Maine), Nick Yafrate, and Michael Paonessa (Massachusetts) will be conducting upcoming presentations to the Younger Member Group of the Boston Society of Civil Engineers Section (BSCES). The goal of the presentations is to provide the Younger Member Group a training ground to develop future leaders of BSCES, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), and the civil engineering profession as a whole. Scott's presentation is entitled "Elevated Temperatures in Landfills" and it will…
Euan Stoddart will present at the Annual General Meeting (AGM), Dinner and Conference of the Institute of Explosives Engineers (IExpE) at Norton Park in Winchester, England on April 4, 2017. Euan will represent MMI Engineering, a division of Geosyntec. His presentation is entitled "Structural Response of Building Facades and Architectural Features to Explosion Loads." Euan's primary areas of expertise are in structural analysis and response, skills he has applied within the security, nuclear, and hydrocarbon…
Duane Graves (Tennessee) authored an article entitled "Winning the Brownfields Gambit" for the Tennessee Bar Association Website on March 1, 2017. Winning the Brownfields Gambit Duane Graves, Ph.D., BCES Senior Principal Geosyntec Consultants, Inc. 180A Market Place Blvd. Knoxville, Tennessee 37922 Introduction Urban landscapes in most cities show the pockmarks of long-gone industry in the form of derelict buildings; silent, cold factories; and vacant lots fenced to keep people out and contamination in. These properties…
Helen Dawson (Washington, D.C.) will speak on "The Science Behind Water Quality" with Kelly DiNatale at the American Bar Association's (ABA) 35th Water Law Conference at the Loews Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles, California from 9:45 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on March 28, 2017. For its 35th year, the ABA Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources' (SEER) Water Law Conference will bring together government, nonprofit, and private practitioners to discuss emerging issues, hot topics, and…
Andrea Braga (Massachusetts) and Dan Bourdeau (New Hampshire) will be co-presenting at the 2017 Annual Conference of the Northeast Chapter of the International Erosion Control Association (IECA) at the Sturbridge Host Hotel in Sturbridge, Massachusetts at 9 a.m. on March 29, 2017. Andrea and Dan's presentation is entitled "Active Floodproofing for Coastal Resiliency of Small Businesses in New York City." It will provide an overview of a project aimed at helping to increase the resiliency…
Mark Hanna (California) and Howard Cumberland (Oregon) will present at the American Bar Association's (ABA) 46th Spring Conference at the Loews Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles, California on March 29-31, 2017. Mark will lead a technical round table from 3:45 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. on March 30, 2017 entitled "Issues & Opportunities in Urban River Restoration and Revitalization." The round table will discuss the Los Angeles River, a 51-mile urban waterway running through one of…
Geosyntec is pleased to announce the promotion of Andrea Braga, Brandon Mogan, Christopher Gale, Douglas Baumwirt, Janet Goodfellow, Jennifer Nyman, Jeremy Morris, John Persico, Len deVlaming, Matthew Wissler, Melissa Schmitt, Tamara Hebeler, Thomas Bristol, and Victor Damasceno to Principals within the Geosyntec Family of Companies. These individuals have each made substantial contributions in leading the development and delivery of highly valued solutions to our clients, recruiting and mentoring our next generation of exceptional staff, growing…
Geosyntec is pleased to announce the promotion of Brian Hitchens, Brian Petty, Christopher Greene, Jamie deLemos, Julianna Connolly, Kirk Craig, Matthew Bardol, and Scott Sheridan to Senior Principals within the Geosyntec Family of Companies. These individuals have each made substantial contributions leading the development and delivery of highly-valued solutions to our clients, recruiting and mentoring our next generation of exceptional staff, growing our practice capabilities, and collaborating with colleagues across the firm. Please join me…
Nick Yafrate and Scott Luettich (Massachusetts) will have a paper published in the Air & Waste Management Association's (A&WMA) EM Magazine in March 2017. The article is entitled "Elevated Temperature Landfills (ETLFs) - Challenges Facing the Solid Waste Community." It considers the uncommon but costly problem of high temperatures in landfills resulting not from subsurface fires but from abnormal biological or chemical reactions within the landfill. Nick and Scott describe how elevated temperatures (ETs) have…
Julia Caprio and Duane Graves (Tennessee) will present at a symposium entitled "Fire in the Smokies, Rising from the Ashes" hosted by Lincoln Memorial University's Duncan School of Law and Geosyntec Consultants at the Lincoln Memorial University (LMU) Law in downtown Knoxville from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on March 16, 2017. The symposium will address legal matters, problems, concerns, and questions that the community is dealing with while trying to rebuild. The symposium was…
Liz Marsh (Michigan) will present at the Manufacturers' Education Council's (MEC) 26th Annual Business & Industry's Sustainability and EHS Symposium at the Duke Energy Center in Cincinnati, Ohio from 11:15 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. on March 21, 2017. Her presentation is entitled "Best Management Practices ... Maximizing Value with Your Environmental Compliance Audits." The presentation will cover practical tips to consider in setting up an audit program to ensure legal compliance with U.S. EPA's Audit…
Jarad Champion and Mike Hickey (Illinois) presented at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Midwest Regional Conference at the University of Illinois in Chicago on March 1, 2017. Jarad also served as the co-chair of the environmental session at the conference. Their presentation detailed a coal-fired steam electric power plant water balance study being conducted to develop a computational model for compliance with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency effluent limitation guidelines. The AIChE Midwest Regional…
Geosyntec Engineer Logan Johnson (New Hampshire) recently joined the Commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT), Victoria Sheehan, as guests on the New Hampshire Public Radio (NHPR) call-in talk show The Exchange with Laura Knoy. The discussion centered around New Hampshire's transportation infrastructure. NHPR invited Logan to participate because she is the Chair of the Report Card Committee for the New Hampshire Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE-NH). ASCE-NH plans…
Ali Ebrahimi (Texas) presented at the 2017 Pipeline Research Council International (PRCI) Research Exchange Meeting at the Royal Sonesta Houston Galleria in Houston, Texas on February 21-22, 2017. He is a senior geotechnical engineer with Geosyntec and his presentation at PRCI covered geohazard monitoring techniques for infrastructure projects. The Research Exchange Meeting is scheduled each year to provide PRCI member companies, our key research partners, and external stakeholders with a report on the important research…
Dr. Jason Conder (Huntington Beach, California) will be the first to present in a series of continuing legal education (CLE) events for the Environmental Law Section of the Louisiana State Bar Association (LSBA) on March 28, 2017. Dr. Conder's presentation is entitled "Passive Sampling – An Innovative Technology for Evaluation of Petroleum Impacted Sediments." LSBA members are welcome to attend the presentation in the Taylor Porter Founder's Room, located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Registration is…
Jeff Roberts, Sandra Dworatzek (Guelph), and Elizabeth Edwards will present at the RemTEC Summit at the Colorado Conventions Center in Denver, Colorado on March 7-9, 2017. Jeff and Sandra will be representing SiREM, a division of Geosyntec. Jeff's presentation is entitled "Optimizing Injection Methods Using High Quality Anaerobic Injection Water and Dealing with Low pH Groundwater during Bioremediation of Chlorinated Solvents." Sandra's presentation is entitled "Bioaugmentation Approaches for Anaerobic Benzene Remediation." University of Toronto professor…
Joe Cleary (New Jersey) will present at the New Jersey Water Environment Association (NJWEA) Technology Transfer Seminar at the Sheraton Eatontown at Eatontown, New Jersey on March 7, 2017. His presentation will discuss the latest trends in industrial water reuse. The discussion will include a review of key drivers, water reuse approaches, current technologies, risk assessment approaches, and design system process issues. Case studies will feature water reuse projects in the food and beverage, pharmaceutical…
Lange Jorstad (Australia) was elected President of the Australian Chapter of the International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH) at the annual general meeting in November 2016. The appointment followed over ten years serving in state and national committee roles with IAH Australia. The IAH is a scientific and educational charitable organization for scientists, engineers, water managers and other professionals working in the fields of groundwater resource planning, management and protection. The Australian Chapter is the largest…
Geosyntec's Fort Gillem Vapor Intrusion Investigation project received an Honor Award at the 2017 ACEC Georgia Engineering Excellence Awards on February 25, 2017 at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre in Atlanta. The American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) of Georgia and the Georgia Engineering Alliance based the award on the successful and innovative consulting engineering services Geosyntec provided to the Fort Gillem Vapor Intrusion (VI) Investigation. Fort Gillem is a former United States Army…
Sandra Dworatzek and Phil Dennis delivered a presentation entitled "Bioremediation Approaches and Tools for Anaerobic Benzene Remediation" at SMART Remediation held in Toronto, Ontario on January 26, 2017 and Ottawa, Ontario on February 16, 2017. Smart Methods in Advanced Remediation Technologies (SMART) is a series of technical learning seminars for environmental professionals to bring the North American environmental community together to enhance the collective understanding of cutting-edge characterization and remediation technologies. "Bioremediation Approaches and Tools…
Chunling Li and David Espinoza (Maryland) co-authored a paper entitled, "Assessment of Reinforced Embankment Stability over Soft Soils Based on Monitoring Results" that will be published in Geosynthetics International in Issue 1 of 2017. The paper presents a semi-empirical method to assess the stability during construction of a reinforced embankment constructed over soft ground. A finite-element model calibrated using obtained monitoring results was used to evaluate the process of how the reinforcement tensile strength and…